


Crossroad

by MestariYN



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Crossroads, Death, Journey, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-29
Updated: 2015-12-29
Packaged: 2018-05-10 06:54:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5575630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MestariYN/pseuds/MestariYN
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The end and the beginning of a journey...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Crossroad

_„Do you know why you are here? “_

_"No…”_

_"How do you feel?”_

_“Empty…?”_

_“So do all who died.”_

_“I’m… dead?”_

_“Yes… at long last, you died. Died in your friends arms. He heard the last breath leaving your lungs; no words would roll over your tongue again. I must confess I could not think of any better friend than him. He took care of you although you left nothing but your body behind.”_

_“Who are you?”_

_“A stranger.”_

_“Are you death?”_

_“I would not say so.”_

_“Why can’t I see you?”_

_“No one can see me because no one has to see me.”_

_“Alright then… Where am I?”_

_“You are on the crossroad,_ _ **Hideyoshi Nagachika.**_ _You are between life and death.”_

_“Call me Hide, so do all… or so did all actually. I’m dead. But I don’t understand… how can I be between life and death?”_

_“Let me put it into this way: it is some sort of a rule. Everyone has to go this way. That is the last journey before you enter…”_

_“Enter… what?... why do you stop now?”_

_“… you will see it with your own eyes, Hide.”_

_“Alright… so… why am I here now?”_

_“To finish life.”_

_“But… I’m dead? You told me so. I mean… How can I finish something that had already happened?”_

_“That’s another rule: before you go on with your journey, you must finish your life.”_

_“And… how?”_

_“Close your eyes. What can you see?”_

_“I can see… me… at least that’s what I think.”_

_“You see the day when you were born.”_

_“I look… strange.”_

_“Why do all humans say this?”_

_“But it’s true… look… I had no hair. Not a single one. Weird… but, I don’t know this man. Who is it?”_

_“This man is your father.”_

_“My… father?”_

_“You never met him.”_

_“No… I didn’t. He died soon after… My mother never lost a word about it. I have no memory… And I couldn’t visit him because there was no grave. Nothing. Just one old picture that I kept in my pocket for years.”_

_“Many years have gone by since I met your father.”_

_“You met him..?”_

_“I did. I remember very well his last words.”_

_“What did he say?”_

_“He said: if I had the chance to hold my dear son for just a minute longer, I would take it. Feeling his warmth one last time…”_

_“I…”_

_“You are not the first one who shed a tear on the crossroad. Nor will you be the last one. I do not say do not cry since not every tear is sign of evil and pain. Sometimes it is a sign of relief. Go on now… tell me, what can you see?”_

_“I see… me again… growing up. My grandmother… she was the sweetest person I knew. My birthday… I turned four… wow, I remember that cake. It tasted horribly. As if it was made a hundred years ago. Ou, my first day- wait… I know him…”_

_“Yes, you do.”_

_“It’s Kaneki… Is he alright?”_

_“He is still alive, if that is what you mean.”_

_“Good… very good.”_

_“May I say something?”_

_“Of course. You seem to be the boss here anyway.”_

_“I’ve seen many people standing there where you stand. So many different people, so many different stories. And yet, there is something that most of them share.”_

_“What?”_

_“Even though they died, they still cared for those they held most dear, for those, they left behind. I do not believe I will ever be able to understand this.”_

_“Kaneki is my best friends… no… he was.”_

_“You will get used to it.”_

_“The eyepatch. Ah… Why did all this happen?_

_“So think all who live in such times. It is not up to you to decide in which time you are born. You are born when you are meant to. Every birth brings a new light into the world, while every death releases it. And no light lives in vain. Each of them has its own task. Once fulfilled, the light goes out.”_

_“So… my task is over?”_

_“Not your task, but your work.”_

_“My work?”_

_“You made another light, that almost died, shine again.”_

_“The other light… you mean… Kaneki?”_

_“Yes. He shines because of the light that you laid into his hands.”_

_“I think… this is the last memory of my life.”_

_“What do you see?”_

_“I see Kaneki, holding me… in his arms while… while… a single tear… appears in his eye. His eye, not the eye of the ghoul. He wants to go… home…; home… to the place where we belonged. The place where everything… seemed to be… good.”_

_“Home… well, I can tell you that Kaneki brought you home.”_

_“Did… he…?”_

_“He did. He did.”_

_“I can’t see anything anymore. There’s nothing. I think it’s because I died.”_

_“Yes, it is time now, Hide. Your work is finished. Here now, on the crossroad between life and death our way parts. You go now your own way while I will dwell here, watching over your memories and keeping them until the sun sets the last time.”_

_“So… I will lose all my memory?”_

_“Yes. That is the way all must go. But even though you lose your memory, they will not be lost.”_

_“Can I ask you one last question?”_

_“Yes.”_

_“What will I see?”_

_“Well… I cannot tell you for sure. Some see a green land, gently touched by the swift rising sun. For others, everything turns to silver glass while the rain of this world stops.”_

_“Ok…”_

_“Hide… is there anything else you want to ask? Was that really your last question?”_

_“Actually… there is one question…”_

_“Then ask.”_

_“Is Kaneki… is he… is he safe… and happy?”_

_“Kaneki is safe. He is happy. He has recovered. He shines even brighter now. And most importantly… he has not forgotten you, Hide. Since the day the road parted you, he has kept you in his memory.”_

_“Go… good. Hu... I think it's time. I should be leaving, hm... Goodbye.”_

_“Farewell, Hide… here at last comes the end. Farewell.”_

  
And Hide stepped forward, stepped into the light and leaving the crossroad, leaving everything behind as the light faded. A single star blinked at night as Kaneki Ken raised his head to the sky, standing there in silence, only hearing the sigh and murmur of the wind, and the sound sank deep into his heart. At last he turned away, as the light and shimmer of the star above faded...


End file.
